U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder In L.A. To Make Announcement About Marijuana Legalization; He'll Be Joined By Pot Foes

Update: Holder was a no-show, but he did send a letter to local authorities stating he'll continue to crack down on pot crimes even if California legalizes it. Read our report here.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is scheduled to be in town Friday to make an announcement about California's marijuana-legalization effort.

We're not expecting it to be an endorsement. Here's why: Standing with him will be Prop. 19 opponents Sheriff Lee Baca an District Attorney Steve Cooley along with the former heads of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Drug Enforcement Administration.

One big question for Holder: If Prop. 19, the legalization effort, passes, will federal law enforcement still press forward against potheads?

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On the other hand, the Obama administration has definitely tried to appear more tolerant on the 420 front: It ordered the DEA to stop enforcing federal anti-pot laws against dispensaries in states where medical marijuana is legal.

So stay tuned. The press conference is at 10 a.m. outside sheriff's headquarters. We'll have a report.

Dennis Romero is an L.A. Weekly staff writer. He formerly worked at the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Los Angeles Times, where he participated in Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the L.A. riots. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone online, the Guardian and, as a young stringer, the New York Times.